Bridge-the-Gap Alimony in Jacksonville

The Purpose of Bridge-the-Gap Alimony in Florida

According to
Florida Statute § 61.08, the court may grant alimony in one of six ways—including permanent,
temporary, rehabilitative, durational, lump sum or bridge-the-gap. Each
was designed to provide the "dependent spouse" with economic
support for a certain period of time, depending on their specific financial
needs at the time of their divorce.

For example,
rehabilitative alimony may be awarded if one spouse needs time to become self-sustaining—either
by bolstering their education or undergoing training that would be necessary
to re-enter the workforce. Similar to this, bridge-the-gap alimony was
designed to assist one spouse with "legitimate identifiable short-term
needs" while they make the transition from being married to becoming single.

In some cases, these short-term needs may include basic living expenses
while they wait for their house to sell. In other cases, one spouse may
need support from their former husband or wife while they complete a retaining
program that would allow for more significant employment prospects.

Each case is different, as each couple faces a unique set of circumstances
during their divorce, but it is important to understand that the stipulations
surrounding bridge-the-gap alimony are fairly concrete. For example, under
no circumstance will this form of
spousal support exceed two years, nor will the either party be able to seek a modification
from the court once it has been awarded. For this reason, it is imperative
that you work out a suitable arrangement before the order is finalized.

Would alimony payments be terminated upon death or remarriage?

Under the law, bridge-the-gap alimony is subject to certain restrictions—one
of them being that the paying spouse would be freed of their obligation
to provide alimony payments if their former spouse has suffered an untimely death.

The same would also apply if the paying spouse were to pass away before
the court-order duration of spousal support expired. In addition to this,
remarriage on the part of the receiving spouse would also constitute a
termination of bridge-the-gap alimony, as it would be assumed that the
new spouse would be able to provide some level of financial support. Since
there are numerous rules and provisions that surround this form of spousal
support, I encourage you to speak with the
Jacksonville divorce lawyers at my firm if you have any further questions.

Can I modify the amount or duration of bridge-the-gap alimony?

As stated in Florida Statute § 61.08(5), an award of bridge-the-gap
alimony "shall not be modifiable in amount or duration." This
means that the conditions of the spousal support order will be final once
they have been set forth by the court. Since it is only intended to provide
the receiving spouse with economic assistance for short-term needs,
modification would be strictly prohibited—unlike most other forms of alimony
in Florida. When the court orders maintenance that is durational, rehabilitative
or permanent, for example, they have considered that one or both of the
party's needs could change over this extended period of time. When it
comes to bridge-the-gap alimony, however, it is understood that this form
of support is temporary—thus not necessitating the need for modification.

How does bridge-the-gap alimony differ from durational alimony?

As mentioned earlier, bridge-the-gap alimony is intended to provide one
party with financial support for a limited period of time—which,
in this case, would be no longer than two years. During this period of
time, it is expected that the receiving spouse will take measures to become
self-reliant.

While similar to the purpose of
durational alimony, bridge-the-gap alimony does not necessarily factor in how long the couple
has been married or how long it might take for the receiving spouse to
gain employment. Oppositely, the length of durational alimony will often
correspond with how long the couple has been married—as long as
it was a short-term (less than 7 years) or moderate-term (7-17 years)
marriage. As such, durational alimony payments cannot exceed the length
of the marriage, which would allow for a maximum award of 17 years.

Discuss Your Case with a Jacksonville Divorce Lawyers

If you have made the decision to end your marriage in Florida, you should
not hesitate to find out how the Jacksonville divorce attorney at Charles
E. Willmott, P.A. can assist you in securing the divorce settlement that
you deserve.

When you
contact my firm at (904) 849-5183, you can rest easier knowing that you are retaining
the help of a Board Certified divorce expert.

The information on this website is for general information purposes only.
Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual
case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt
or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.

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